Resource Library

The Southwestern Connecticut Health CareeRx Academy at The WorkPlace, Inc. in Bridgeport, Connecticut uses hard data to bolster positive impacts related to healthcare training completion and employment. The Health CareeRx Academy partnered with Brandeis University’s Institute on Assets and Social Policy to analyze Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program data on career advancement in the healthcare field. Brandeis University studied the first round of HPOG participants (HPOG 1.0) and concluded that HPOG is very effective at getting people into an initial training and an entry-level healthcare job, but the model for career advancement needed to shift. Confusion about projected rates and paths of growth in certain healthcare jobs impacted the training participants chose. This led to some participants dropping out of training before completing or attempting to switch to a new field.

Pima County Community College supports community healthcare and workforce needs through the Health Career Opportunities with Personalized Education Supports (HOPES) program. Funded by a Health Profession Opportunity Grant (HPOG), HOPES provides training in high-demand healthcare fields to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients and other low-income individuals. Throughout the years, HOPES lives up to its namesake with continued participant success.

In July 2019, Volunteers of America Michigan (VOAMI) added a new staff role to their VOAMI Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program. The Training and Enrichment (TE) Specialist offers extra guidance to participants as they move from enrollment to healthcare training to employment. The TE Specialist offers one-on-one support, connecting participants to the best resources for their needs. They host workshops and job fairs and also reach out to local healthcare employers to stay up to date on open positions, company culture, and future needs.

Montefiore Medical Center focuses on promoting healthier neighborhoods through commitment to community and population health. They are helping build healthcare workforce development opportunities for residents of the Bronx, New York and its surrounding communities. Montefiore Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) provides support to its participants to complete home health aide training, obtain employment, and pursue career advancement. To date, Montefiore HPOG has helped hundreds along career pathways to self-sufficiency.

Healthcare employers in Anchorage, AK, look beyond test scores when hiring entry-level employees. The demand for new hires with interpersonal and soft skills is on the rise. Employer partners of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council Health Profession Opportunity Grants (CITC HPOG) program in Alaska stated a clear need for entry-level employees to demonstrate such skills. Initiative and a strong work ethic are highly sought-after traits, yet they are often hard to find in the incoming local healthcare workforce.

Health-Care Ute Project (HCUTE) uses Distance Education to connect rural, at-risk adult members of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe with post-secondary education. Education options for reservation Natives are usually inaccessible and unfamiliar. The few tribal members who leave often find the experience culturally intimidating, and dropout rates are high. For those who succeed, they do not return to the reservation after accepting jobs in their field, which weakens the local infrastructure.

PHOCAS creates a collaborative support ecosystem to help rural students succeed.

Working with rural populations presents unique challenges for workforce development programs. With individuals scattered over large geographic areas, administrators must come up with creative ways to reach participants who may live many miles from access points and have limited transportation options. The Northeast Louisiana Professional Healthcare Opportunities—Careers And Support (PHOCAS) Project has made its wrap-around services a key aspect of the support provided to its students.

One-on-one coaching helps students returning to the classroom after many years succeed in healthcare training.

Health Careers Northwest (HCNW) is a WorkSource Portland Metro program that provides coaching, training, and job placement support to low-income adults interested in healthcare. They strive to assist job seekers obtain middle-income wages by providing support services and guidance during the training phase of their career journey.

Southwestern Connecticut’s The WorkPlace serves as its Workforce Development Board, helping job seekers prepare for careers and strengthening the workforce for employers. Their Health CareeRx Academy program focuses specifically on preparing participants for careers in the healthcare field.

Since 1965, Schenectady Community Action Program (SCAP) has pursued alleviating poverty, by helping people to help themselves. Through various programs, they support and empower individuals to build upon their personal resources and abilities to rise out of poverty and become self-sufficient. With the Health Professions Opportunity Grant (HPOG), SCAP partnered with Schenectady County Community College’s Upstate Partnership for Healthcare Pathways (UPHP) program to enroll low-income job seekers in healthcare training.